midterm (vocab from chapters) Flashcards
criminal justice
the system of institutions, policies, and practices with the goal of maintaining social control and deterring crime through sanctions and rehabilitation
law enforcement
law enforcement agencies are charged with investigating crimes and arresting individuals alleged to have committed crimes
courts
courts are responsible for interpreting and applying the law
corrections
functions to protect society from criminals through monitoring, and other community-based programs
jails
local facilities managed by cities and counties that perform a somewhat overlapping, but distinct, purpose from prisons and penitentiaries. jails hold both those convicted of crimes and individuals who have not yet been convicted. jails typically detain individuals who have been convicted of misdemeanors serving sentences of less than one year
prisons
hold persons convicted of more serious offenses who are serving longer sentences
probation
a sentence that suspends or delays a term of full-time incarceration in prison or jail. in return of the suspended/delayed sentence, the judge orders the offender to return to the community where they have to abide by certain rules and conditions
parole
a person just released from prison may be placed on parole as part of their sentence. parole operates like probation in that the offender is released from prison back into the community, where they must abide by certain rules and conditions and failure to comply with those often means a return to prison.
nolle prosequi
latin for “be unwilling to pursue”. this is commonly used by a prosecutor to willingly terminate legal proceedings before trial or before a verdict. the statement is often construed as an admission that the charges cannot be proven
grand juries
tasked with determining if the prosecutor has sufficient evidence to proceed with charges; may be convened to investigate and issue an indictment or no bill
no bill
indicates that insufficient evidence is present to proceed with the case and the accused is released if they are in jail
nolo contendere
accepting a penalty without admitting guilt
victim advocates
trained professionals who support crime victims throughout the process. resources from victim advocates may help educate victims about the criminal justice system proceedings and offer options for support aht is available. the advocates educate victims about their rights and in some cases, attend court proceedings with the victims.
inalienable rights
rights that are universal and not contingent on laws or beliefs specific to a particular government or culture
judicial activism
occurs when decisions are influenced by personal or political underpinings
USA PATRIOT ACT (united and strengthening america by providing appropriate tools required to intercept and obstruct terrorism)
the 2001 act signed into law by george w. bush to strengthen security measures designed to protect the united states from attack
USA Freedom Act
a 2015 law that came into effect the day after the USA PATRIOT ACT expired; it continued many of the elements from the USA PATRIOT ACT but halted the NSA from gathering massive amounts of phone data on citizens. it instead allows phone companies to retain consumer data that can be accessed by the NSA once federal court permission is obtained
crime
the breaking of a law for which the criminal justice system or some other governing authority prescribes punishment. crimes are defined differently across geographic regions, including localities, states, and nations. the exact same crime can be given different names in different places and what constitutes a crime may be contingent on the characteristics of the perpetrator or the victim
street crimes
crimes that are relatively common and serious, involving a victim and an offender who come together in space and time. examples include rape, sexual assault, homicide, robbery, and physical assault
property crime
crime against property, including motor vehicle theft, burglary, and property theft.
victimless crimes
criminal offenses that are thought not to involve victims because they cause no direct harm to individuals other than the offenders; includes things like prostitution, drug use, and gambling.
white collar crimes
a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his occupation; is typically il-defined but can include lying, stealing, or cheating by occupational, corporate, and government actors using a wide range of frauds; examples include bribery, securities fraud, ponzi schemes, mortgage fraud, misuse of pension funds, bank fraud, unsafe products, violations of public trust, medical fraud, insider trading, price fixing, toxic dumping, fiduciary fraud, religious fraud.
Kate’s Law
an amendment to the immigration and nationality act that calls for an increase in penalties for undocumented immigrants who return to the united states and commit crimes. the bill has not cleared the senate.
cybercrime
a form of illegal activity using a computer or computer networks as the primary method of commission; includes network intrusions, fraud, dissemination of computer viruses, theft of service, online gambling, trade secret theft, securities fraud, child pronography, zoom bombing, denial of service attacks, identity theft, stalking, and cyberbullying